Max Verstappen might be heading to Anfield soon, thanks to some friendly pressure from Liverpool stars Virgil van Dijk and Cody Gakpo. The Formula 1 champion, who’s already won four titles, has been getting regular invites from his fellow Dutchmen.
“Virgil keeps inviting me to come to a game and I will definitely do it,” Verstappen told Mirror Sport. “I’m not that idiot that hates another club.”
It’s a bit complicated though – Verstappen’s actually a Manchester United fan. But he’s got a soft spot for Dutch players wherever they end up.
“When I see Virgil play or Cody, when they do well at Liverpool, that excites me as well,” he says.
Van Dijk even dropped by to visit Verstappen in Monaco earlier this year, and now it looks like the F1 star might return the favor at Anfield.
The timing’s interesting – Liverpool and Manchester United face off today, with Liverpool sitting pretty at the top of the Premier League while United’s struggling down in 14th place.
Verstappen’s United fandom goes way back. “I just like the story behind when Sir Alex Ferguson was the manager,” he explains. “Initially, the Dutch connection with van Nistelrooy and van Persie also came in. You become a fan and you start reading more into the club, how they have achieved a lot of their success. It just inspires me.”
He’s been keeping an eye on the management changes at United too. After Erik ten Hag’s departure, Ruud van Nistelrooy had a brief stint as interim manager before moving to Leicester City.
“I was a little bit sad to see Van Nistelrooy go completely out of the club,” Verstappen admits. “But then he got a great role at Leicester now, so I’m also very excited to see how he will do.”
As for United’s new manager Ruben Amorim, Verstappen’s cautiously optimistic: “It’s going to be a big task, but he’s an exciting manager. He’s still very young. I think he has a lot of potential and I just hope that he brings the best out of the players, of himself. I hope he will bring the club back to the top.”
